Marcia D. Mundt, Ph.D.
I help individuals, organizations, and communities leverage complex data and rigorous research to generate insights and jump into action quickly.
I work at the intersection of analysis and strategy. I dig into what the data is really saying, and then translate it into forward-leaning rapid assessment tools, decision frameworks, and strategies.
With a background in applied research, program evaluation, and real-time learning, I’ve worked across sectors to make data more user-friendly and research more actionable—from post-conflict peacebuilding and democracy support to education systems and community development. Whether I’m leading an evaluation, facilitating a workshop, or designing a strategy session, I focus on what helps people learn faster, act smarter, and adapt with confidence.
Before launching my consulting practice, I led research, evaluation, and learning for global democracy initiatives at the Consortium for Elections and Political Process Strengthening. I also designed stakeholder-informed MEL systems at the U.S. Institute of Peace, New Sector Alliance, Stanford’s Graduate School of Business Career Development Center, and City Year. Across these roles, I developed data-driven learning tools for policymakers, practitioners, and local leaders working in both domestic and international contexts.
I have advised organizations of various sizes and in different political contexts in the following areas of expertise:
Data Insights: Delivering decision-ready insights by transforming complex data into compelling narratives, dashboards, and strategic positioning. I specialize in integrating stakeholder feedback, context analysis, and advanced analytics to support adaptive learning and informed policy choices.
Applied Research Design: Bridging the gap between evidence and action through rigorous, real-world research designs. I pair each research project with actionable tools—frameworks, templates, curriculum, and policy guides—that translate evaluation findings into practical resources for policy and program improvement.
Methodological Creativity: Blending traditional mixed-methods with frontier tools—such as sentiment analysis, AI-informed trend detection, and rapid stakeholder feedback loops—to generate dynamic, equity-centered research and evaluation systems tailored for complexity and change.
Social and Behavioral Change: Combining theory and practice to understand how norms shift and movements scale. My work draws from social movement research and participatory approaches to craft strategies that influence behavior and amplify grassroots and policy-level impact.
Peacebuilding: Illuminating evidence-based approaches to dispute resolution, conflict management, and reconciliation in fragile and post-conflict settings. I integrate participatory methods and dialogue into all of my work to build bridges across lines of division domesitcally and abroad.
Innovations in Democracy: Designing and evaluating cutting-edge democratic practices—from participatory budgeting to democratic trends analysis. I help partners adopt novel civic engagement and tech strategies to foster transparency, trust, and responsive governance.
Economic Empowerment: Drawing from community economic development practice and research in under-resourced contexts and informal settlements, my work supports initiatives that expand access to economic opportunity and strengthen community resilience by centering lived experience and driving locally grounded, bottom-up solutions.
Workforce Development & Education: Developing, evaluating, and scaling education, career readiness, and leadership development programs that meet evolving labor market demands. I integrate equity-focused instructional design with human-centered learning to enhance outcomes for learners, organizations, and systems.
Examples of my work
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The added-benefit of engaging citizens in decision-making
Role: project lead, first author
Overview: Participatory Deliberative Democracy for Peacebuilding summarizes an extensive study how two post-conflict countries, Guatemala and El Salvador, used participatory deliberative democracy (PDD)—a model of citizen engagement in local policymaking—to strengthen good governance and build a more sustainable peace long-term. It shows that citizen participation in local policy decisions can build long-term trust in government and reduce post-conflict tensions. Top-down models that enforce and incentivize participatory forums with clear rules, funding, and accountability structures were more effective than loosely structured, ad hoc approaches. Structured processes for local input and collaboration—especially when tied to public safety or infrastructure—can help build resilient communities and strengthen civic trust in polarized or unstable contexts.
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Strategies for scaling-up social change
Role: Researcher, co-author, and workshop facilitator
Overview: Scaling up Peacebuilding and Social Change is the final product of the The Topol Peace Data Initiative that translates years of research on peacebuilding and social movements—spanning Israel/Palestine, Northern Ireland, and the U.S.—into practical tools for activists and organizations seeking to scale their impact. Drawing from case studies and published research, like this article I co-authored on the use of social media to scale Black Lives Matter, the initiative offers a hands-on toolkit to help both grassroots and established groups strengthen legitimacy, broaden appeal, and engage across divides. Whether you're looking to grow a local movement or maintain focus amid expansion this tool turns research into strategy, and strategy into action.
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Insights generation, AI, and dashboards
Roles: advisor, builder, dreamer
Overview: I enjoy pushing on the boundaries of what’s possible when it comes to generating insights for stategy and decision-making. From building dashboards to highlight trends and stakeholder feedback in near-real-time to testing out sentiment analysis and fine-tuning AI models to analyze data, apply theoretical frameworks, and identify quality evidence - I am ready to explore and iterate on the next big idea for leveraging data to solve the world’s challenges. Check out my Substack on RealTimeDemTrends for my latest experiment!
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Systems change research agendas
Role: lead for the global, collaborative process
Overview: I have collaborated with sector thought leaders, researchers, and colleagues to design and explore systems change through coordinated research agendas. As shared in this AEA365 blog post on Using a Learning Agenda to Test a Theory of Change, I have supported organizations and consotritums of partners to articulate, explore, and empirically test systems-level theories of change at various levels of analysis.